Coming Attractions Trailer Night--Fall 2003
By Cheryl L. Dixon
Not even dreary, rainy weather could keep nearly 200 die-hard film fans away from the Fall 2003 edition of the Washington, D.C. Film Society’s Coming Attractions Trailer Night held on Wednesday evening, November 19, 2003, at the Loews Cineplex Wisconsin Avenue 6 Theatres in Washington, D.C. Hosted by the ever-popular film critics, Joe Barber and Bill Henry, also known as “the movie guys,” this event treated the film-loving audience to sneak previews and spirited discussion on the art of film marketing and anything else you wanted to know about the upcoming films in general. As always, Film Society members and other guests talked back to the critics in a no-holds-barred, informal discussion of what’s hot and what’s not as viewed in the trailers as they feasted on tasty burritos provided courtesy of Chipotle. They also took home promotional items including CDs, DVDs, books, hats, t-shirts, and posters. Two lucky drawing winners each received free hotel weekend packages.
Thirty film trailers were shown in seven categories (cleverly drawn by Bill Henry). The D.C. Film Society extends thanks to the Coordinating Committee for their time, energy, and enthusiasm in pulling together this event, especially Cate Nielan (Event Coordinator), Michael Kyrioglou, Liz Wagger, Karrye Braxton, Cheryl Dixon, Larry Hart, Ky Nguyen, Tuan Tran, and Billy Coulter. Special thanks to Joe Barber, Bill Henry, Chipotle, Allied Advertising, Loews Cineplex Wisconsin Avenue 6, and all the participating studios, all of whose efforts contributed to the event’s success.
The wit and wisdom of the film critics were interspersed amongst the category selections and the audience applause and barbs. Commentary was at times serious, at times frivolous, but always entertaining. The audience voted for their favorite trailers by applause. The winners in each of the seven categories are underlined along with a brief recap of the commentary in the notes that follow:
"And the Hilarity Ensues"
Stuck on You (20th Century Fox). Divided they fall, united they stand. Conjoined twins (Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear) arrive in Hollywood and star in Cher’s television show. Joe and Bill observed: 2 Oscar winners + 1 Oscar nominee + the Farrelly brothers = 1 unusual production.
The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra (TriStar Pictures-Sony). A black and white 50s-style, camp trailer. You’ll be sterilized with fear. This one gets the Grand Prize Award for the trailer eliciting the loudest audience applause and gales of laughter. Joe and Bill ponder whether this film genre should have remained in the 1950s!
Chasing Liberty (Warner Bros.). Mandy Moore as the rebellious U.S. president’s daughter finding herself in Europe. A remake of Roman Holiday?
Along Came Polly (Universal). Jennifer Aniston, Ben Stiller, and Alec Baldwin in a too-cute romantic comedy. There are great expectations for this film. Is it anything like Something About Mary?
"Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before"
Cheaper by the Dozen (20th Century Fox). Cute. Not exactly a remake, but a re-envisioning of the 1950 Myrna Loy/Clifton Webb comedy. A football coach (Steve Martin) and writer (Bonnie Hunt) raise 12 kids while maintaining careers.
Love Don’t Cost a Thing (Warner Bros.). Alvin the dreamer (Nick Cannon) learns how to be “cool” and get the girl (Christina Milian), but at what cost? Similar to1987’s comedy Can’t Buy Me Love.
The Alamo (Touchstone-Disney). Billy Bob Thornton joins the bankers, farmers, lawyers, husbands, brothers, fathers, and outcasts in this epic to be released in the Spring. It’s a big picture, period drama.
Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (Artisan). This trailer elicited the most exasperated groans. Definitely not a sequel to Dirty Dancing, the 1987 movie featuring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, but marketed to capitalize on its predecessor’s popularity.
"Danged Furriners"
Question: How can you tell when the trailer is for a foreign film? Answer: foreign movies are marketed with soundtracks, there’s music and little or no dialogue, and no subtitles.
La Mentale (IDP Distribution). A man behind bars is freed from prison and wants to leave the past behind.
In America (Fox Searchlight). A winning, touching movie from Jim Sheridan (My Left Foot), of an Irish family’s emigration to the U.S.
Garage Days (Fox Searchlight). Dream on, aspiring musicians tale.
Shaolin Soccer (Miramax). Kick some grass. Everybody was Kung Fu fighting! Wild cheers for this Kung Fu soccer trailer. Lots of special effects.
"Kid Lit, Kid's Lit, Kitty Litter and Lit for Little People"
The Polar Express (Warner Bros.) You’ll have to wait until November 2004 to see this holiday movie featuring Tom Hanks as a cartoon character. A Robert Zemeckis film.
Peter Pan (Universal). British production using unknown actors and a darker perspective.
The Cat in the Hat (Universal). Brian Grazer’s interpretation of the beloved Dr. Seuss book. Bill and Joe thought the trailer was visually outstanding, but that the film content was “too adult” for kids, and not as funny as the trailer.
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (New Line Cinema). Warmly cheered and applauded trailer. Bill and Joe predict that the third installment of the trilogy will be every bit as rousing as the first and second installments. They also predict a best picture/best director Oscar for Peter Jackson. Were you lucky enough to have purchased tickets for the extended versions of all three movies at the Uptown Theatre?
"Big People Books"
Timeline (Paramount). Screen adaptation of the Michael Crichton novel about time travel back to 14th century France.
The Missing (Revolution Studios-Sony). Cate Blanchett must accept help from her estranged father (Tommy Lee Jones) in order to find her missing child in this Ron Howard-directed 19th century drama.
Paycheck (Paramount). Based on a “cool” short story. Ben Affleck is the reverse engineer who must uncover the secret of the objects he has saved in an envelope after his memory is erased.
Big Fish (Columbia Pictures-Sony). “Discover an adventure as big as life itself.” This reconciliation story of a tall-tale-teller played by Albert Finney and Ewan McGregor and his estranged son (Billy Crudup) is enhanced by the visual style of director Tim Burton. The film effectively captures the genius and imagery of the book.
House of Sand and Fog (Dreamworks). Jennifer Connelly as a troubled woman attempting to reclaim her family home from an Iranian immigrant (Ben Kingsley) and his family.
"She's/He's/They've Got a Dream and Nothing's Going to Stop..."
We’ve seen these themes before.
Honey (Universal). Sweet. Jessica Alba goes hip-hop.
Torque (Warner Bros.) Trey (Ice Cube) and the biker boys have fun.
You Got Served (Screen Gems-Sony). Cliched, “urban” drama. Two friends (Omarion, Houston) must first win a dance contest, where competing crews vie for money and respect, to open a recording studio.
The Butterfly Effect (New Line Cinema). Ashton Kutcher goes back in time to save the love of his life. The trailer effectively makes the film look intriguing!
"I'm a Big Star--Love Me Or Else"
Mona Lisa Smile (Columbia Pictures-Sony). Julia Roberts teaches at Wellesley and encourages students to pursue more than their “M.R.S.” degrees.
The Last Samurai (Warner Bros.). Tom Cruise, the samurai. Big star in a big picture, need we say more?
50 First Dates (Columbia Pictures-Sony). Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore. Is this another Groundhog Day?
Haunted Mansion (Disney). Eddie Murphy and family take on a haunted mansion. Lots of special effects.
No Good Deed (MAC Releasing). Samuel L. Jackson, the hardest-working man in show business, plays a detective searching for a lost girl. Oops, this movie has already opened and closed!
40 films -- 14 countries -- 6 venues -- 10 days
The 14th Washington Jewish Film Festival
The 14th Washington Jewish Film Festival: An Exhibition of International Cinema presents 40 features, documentaries and shorts from 14 countries, in six venues, during the December 4-14, ten-day Festival. The Festival is presented by the Washington DCJCC's Morris Cafritz Center for the Arts and co-sponsored by the Embassy of Israel and Washington Jewish Week.
The Festival kicks off with the D.C. Premiere of the charming Argentinean comedy Samy y Yo on Thursday, December 4 at 6:45 p.m. at the Washington DC Jewish Community Center’s Aaron and Cecile Goldman Theater (1529 16th Street NW). An hors d’oeuvres, sangria and tango reception will follow at the Embassy of Argentina (1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW).
In this amusing tale, a financially strapped Argentina finds a television host they can believe in and identify with: Samy Goldstein, a neurotic, depressed writer whose girlfriend treats him less than poorly. Propelled to stardom by the sexy and enigmatic Mary, Samy is just as miserable rich and famous as he was poor and a failure. Argentina's economic woes get a dose of Jewish humor, proving laughter may be the best medicine. The evening is co-sponsored by the Embassy of Argentina.
The Festival closes with the beautifully crafted autobiographical story Birch Tree Meadow, directed by Marceline Loridan-Ivens, co-scripted with Jeanne Moreau and starring legendary French actress Anouk Aimée. In this sorrowful yet serene story, Myriam, an Auschwitz survivor, wins a ticket to Poland and forces herself to come to terms with the most painful memories of her past. The film will be screened on Sunday, December 14 at 7:30 p.m. at the Washington DCJCC’s Aaron and Cecile Goldman Theater. A wine reception will follow at the Center (16th St Lobby) with special guest Director Marceline Loridan-Ivens in attendance.
Now in its 14th year, the Washington Jewish Film Festival is one of the largest Jewish film festivals in the world. The Festival has presented more than 400 films on the Jewish experience from over 30 countries. An audience of 6,500 is expected to attend this year’s extraordinarily diverse Festival. For the fifth year, an Audience Award will be presented for Best Feature Film and Best Documentary. Winning films will be announced at the closing night reception.
According to Festival Director Joshua Ford, “Overall, the highlight of this Festival is that it covers such a broad range of topics, themes and stories. Specifically, I am very excited that we have three films from or about Argentina, including our opening night film. And, we have assembled a prestigious panel to discuss, the “Past, Present and Future of the Jewish Community in Argentina.” I think this is a great opportunity to look at a complex situation like the ongoing economic crisis in Argentina, from multiple perspectives, and then synthesize these various views for our audience in a discussion.”
In addition to the Washington DCJCC's Aaron and Cecile Goldman Theater, screenings will be presented at the Goethe-Institut Washington (814 Seventh Street NW); the AFI Silver Theater (8633 Colesville Rd, Silver Spring, MD); the Avalon Theatre (5612 Connecticut Ave NW); the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (100 Raoul Wallenberg Place SW); and The National Gallery of Art - East Wing (4th Street and Constitution NW).
Feature Film Highlights
Agnieszka Holland (Europa, Europa, The Dybbuk) is back with Julie Walking Home, another film that explores the psycho-sexual intersection of the Jewish and Polish experience. Ms. Holland will introduce her film on December 13 at the AFI Silver Theater.
Canadian Director Nicholas Racz introduces his comedic suspense thriller The Burial Society (December 4 and 6), the story of a man who is running from the mob, and finds himself seeking refuge with a small-town Chevrah Kadisha--a trio of old timers whose lives are dedicated to preparing bodies for burial.
The late John Ritter surprises his fans with his far-from-Jack-Tripper character in Manhood, one of his final film roles. Indie Filmmaker Bobby Roth accompanies his film on December 6 and 7.
The powerful 15th century costume drama, Secret Passage, stars Academy Award-winning actor John Turturro (Barton Fink, Miller’s Crossing, The Luhzin Defence); Australian Film Institute Best Actress nominee Tara Fitzgerald (Sirens); Emmy Award Nominee Hannah Taylor Gordon (Anne Frank); and the talented Katherine Borowitz (Illuminata, Mac).
Set in 1946 France, Almost Peaceful, a visually stunning film, shot in the style of Goddard, invites us into an ad-hoc family of Jewish garment workers attempting to mend their lives following WW II.
When Mendy leaves the insular Satmar Hasidic community, his life is in freefall, until he meets up with two interesting characters --Yankel, the self-indulgent and Bianca, his Brazilian roommate. Mendy is a gritty film that pulls no punches, with a script that was co-written by a former Satmar who also wrote the Yiddish dialogue. Director Adam Samuel Vardy will be in attendance at the December 6th screening.
A sequel to the huge French box office hit Would I Lie to You? (11th WJFF), Would I Lie To You Too? revisits the Jewish garment district of Paris where the same cast of characters get into more high-speed, hilarious trouble.
The Swedish film Bit by Bit is the comedic tale of the 25-year-old Swedish slacker, J, whose pathetic love affair with video games comes under scrutiny by his wacky overbearing Jewish family and long-time gentile girlfriend.
An intricate and intriguing film-within-a-film, Empathy dares to perform an analysis of psychoanalysis, essentially turning the profession onto itself.
Documentary Highlights
The locally produced documentary Paper Clips tells the story of one of the most extraordinary experiments in Holocaust education. Born out of innocence and curiosity, the project grew beyond the students’ original intentions, to encompass the entire town of Whitwell, Tennessee--bringing them in contact with survivors from around the world and catching the attention of the national media. Special guests Director Elliot Berlin, Writer/Director Joe Fab, and Producers Ari Pinchot and Robert Johnson will be in attendance; with introduction by local Filmmaker Aviva Kempner.
Special guests Director Debra Gonsher Vinik and David Vinik present the theatrical world premiere screening of Moving Heaven and Earth, the incredible, uplifting, life-affirming story about a community of 600 Ugandan Jews, known as the Abayudaya, and their strong commitment to Judaism.
In From Dachau With Love Bernd Fischer unravels a bizarre, even humorous, battle between two opposing parties, those who accept the town’s grim past as an inevitable part of its identity, and those who would insist Dachau is the perfect location for a romantic honeymoon. Mr. Fischer will introduce his film.
Perlasca: The Courage of a Just Man introduces Italian rescuer Giorgio Perlasca, an ingenious, courageous man instrumental in saving the lives of more than 5,000 Hungarian Jews during WWII.
An engaging doc narrated by Garrison Keillor, The Danish Solution gives a first-hand account of the clandestine evacuation that secured the safety of 95% of the Danish Jews during Nazi occupation. Local Director Karen Cantor will introduce the film.
“Hitler was my matchmaker,” one woman ironically reflects in Undying Love, a unique Canadian documentary filled with engaging testimonies, dreamlike dramatizations and powerful imagery surrounding stories of survivors and their fate, passion and hope as they try to recreate their families and rediscover love.
Sid at 90 spotlights Jewish actor, comedian, impersonator and variety performer Sid Raymond, and challenges the popular assumption that celebrity defines success.
Producer/Director Mel Bucklin presents the world permiere screening of An Exceedingly Dangerous Woman: The Radical Life of Emma Goldman, including interviews with playwright Tony Kushner, poet and essayist Andrei Codrescu, and author E.L. Doctrow.
Sunset Story is a funny and intimate docu-drama set against the backdrop of a retirement home for political progressives, focusing on two women whose feisty engagement with life creates an inseparable bond.
Suzanne Wasserman’s film Thunder in Guyana admiringly documents how Janet Rosenberg Jagan went from the streets of Chicago to become the President of Guyana--often referred to as “the Mother of the Nation.” Special guests: Suzanne Wasserman and local favorite Kojo Nnamdi, Host of NPR’s “Kojo Nnamdi Show,” will lead the discussion following the screenings of Thunder in Guyana and Choosing Exile.
My Name Was Sabina Spielrein: The 1977 discovery of a box of papers found in the basement of Geneva’s former Institute of Psychology uncovers an unknown Russian woman--Sabina Spielrein--and her secret relationship with Sigmund Freud and Carl Gustav Jung.
With Filmmaker Darren Stein at the helm, Put the Camera on Me offers an intimate peek into the power structure within a group of kids captured on film when the parents are away--the jealousy, cruelty, sexuality, innocence, and often perverse imagination seen through the eyes of a child auteur at the dawn of the video generation. (screened with The Great Yiddish Love, Director Diane Nerwen’s brilliantly crafted fictitious love affair between Marlene Dietrich, the tempestuous 1920s idol of German cinema, and Zarah Leander, the sensational actress who filled her shoes after Dietrich defiantly abandoned Germany.)
Director Pearl Gluck will introduce her uniquely humorous doc Divan, the story of a woman with a fixation on a couch. Not just any ordinary couch, this is an ancestral couch belonging to her great-grandfather upon which four esteemed rabbis had slept.
Shalom Ireland reveals the untold story of how Ireland’s affable and ambitious Jewish community came to be a major influence in shaping both Ireland and Israel. Threatened by extinction today, the community is unwilling to surrender.
Choosing Exile: Filmmaker Marc Radomsky is a third generation South African, whose grandfather immigrated to the country to escape pogroms and found prosperity in his new home. Unfortunately, times have changed, forcing Marc and his wife to make the painful decision to immigrate to Australia.
Israeli Features, Documentaries and Shorts
James’ Journey to Jerusalem charmed audiences at the Cannes Film Festival with its tale of an African guest worker in Israel who adapts to the local culture in humorous and telling ways. Special guest Director Ra’anan Alexandrowicz will introduce both screenings.
In Omri Levy’s Miss Entebbe, 13-year-old Noa learns her neighbor’s mother was taken hostage on a plane hijacked by terrorists. She and her friends decide to take matters into their own hands by kidnapping a hostage of their own.
Under Water presents a touching, coming-of-age story centered around Michal, who struggles with her renewed relationship with her ultra-orthodox father.
Shorts Program: Moments--Israel 2002. A cinematic survey of short-takes on the current situation in Israel, 17 three-minute films by 17 different Israeli and Palestinian directors take us all over the state, through the West Bank and Gaza and into the homes and minds of Israelis and Palestinians with drama, humor and style.
Middle Eastern Music
Israeli musician Felix Mizrahi returns to Egypt in search of the legacy and long lost recordings of his late older brother Farag, one of the most celebrated violinists of his time. Taqasim is a voyage to the hidden treasures of classical Arabic music, and to the participation of Jewish musicians in this cultural heritage.
Embrace Me features exquisite music and unique archival footage of Jo Amar, a liturgical poet, singer and composer whose voice embodies the longing and beautiful rhythmic dissonance of Mizrahi music. The film explores the capricious waves of popularity and anonymity that have buffeted Amar's music in Israel, and follows Amar on a trip back to Morocco, delving into the roots of Mizrahi music.
Argentinean Jews: Films and Panel Discussion
Films: Nurit Kedar’s Asesino is a penetrating documentary that examines the disappearance of 3000 young Jews in 1970s Argentina, later to be assumed murdered by the Junta for opposing the fascist regime. The documentary poses controversial and hard-to-ask questions about Israel’s responsibility to world Jewry.
Beth Toni Kruvant’s Born in Buenos Aires guides us through the troubled neighborhoods of the largest Jewish community in Latin America, as the economic crisis there continues to deteriorate and more members of Argentina’s Jewish community slip into the ranks of the poor and unemployed. Ms. Kruvant will be present at the screening and will be a member of the panel.
Panel Discussion: The Past, Present and Future of the Jewish Community in Argentina
Join a group of esteemed panelists for a discussion about the survival and potential of Argentina’s Jewish community in spite of its troubled history and today’s continuing issues of migration, assimilation, and economic crisis. Panelists: Bernardo Kliksberg, Inter-American Development Bank; Beth Toni Kruvant, Director, Born in Buenos Aires; Claudio Grossman, Dean of American University’s Washington College of Law and IAHCR observer of the AMIA Trial; and His Excellency, José Bordon, The Ambassador of Argentina.
Images of Jews and Anti-Faschism in East German Film
At the Goethe-Institut Washington with Professor Jeff Peck
Based on the 1933 play by renowned social critic Friedrich Wolf, and directed by his son, Professor Mamlock is the story of a prominent Jewish professor of surgery whose belief in reason and humanity blind him to the increasing threat of anti-Semitism.
Armin Mueller-Stahl stars in Bronstein’s Children, a story of the inter-generational conflicts and questions of personal justice arising from the Holocaust, based on the book by Jurek Becker, author of Jacob the Liar.
Works in Progress: Focus on Local Filmmakers
Two first-time filmmakers share excerpts from their documentary film projects which they are currently working to complete. Go behind the scenes and hear how a film idea goes from concept to reality, and the many challenges along the way. David Vyorst will present clips from The First Basket, the amazing and largely unknown story of the crucial role Jews served as players on the early teams of the Basketball Association of America--the forerunner of today’s NBA. Robert Podgursky’s documentary-in-progress, Saved By Deportation, recovers a lost chapter from the history of World War II; involving Polish Jews who were deported to work-camps east of the Ural mountains by the invading Soviet Army and were ironically spared the worse horrors of Nazi occupation. Both projects have received seed money from the National Endowment for the Humanities and are the product of D.C.-based filmmakers. Discussion Moderator: David Weinstein, Senior Program Officer, National Endowment for the Humanities.
Festival Director Joshua Ford explains, “I felt that it would be interesting for the Festival to address some of the practical “how to’s” of filmmaking and at the same time, provide some exposure for filmmakers at a critical stage in their process. As luck would have it, there were two DC-based filmmakers who are in the process of completing their first documentary films and who come to the field from other professions. Both David and Robert are long-time members of our audience who were inspired to make their films by coming to the Festival. We’re providing an opportunity for all the members of our audience who have ever thought about making their own film or are just curious about what it would take, to talk with two people who decided to make it happen.”
Special Events
DVD-Release Party: Trembling Before G-d (12th WJFF Audience Award) became one of 2001’s most successful documentaries, winning over twelve awards, including The Teddy Award for Best Documentary at the Berlin Film Festival, The Mayor’s Prize for the Jewish Experience at the Jerusalem Film Festival, and the Golden Plaque Award for best documentary at the Chicago International Film Festival. Join Director/Producer Sandi Simcha Dubowski as he speaks about the impact of his wildly successful film across the globe. A reception will follow, featuring a DVD-signing and screening of film clips from the DVD.
Dinner and a Movie: 20th Something's Night at WJFF with "Dinner at 8". The latest in dating trends, “Dinner At 8” invites singles to enjoy dinner at Savino’s Lounge in Dupont Circle, and then move on to the WJFF screening of the hilariously funny film Bit by Bit. Space is limited.
To download a complete Festival Catalog, visit the WJFF website. Tickets can be ordered from Box Office Tickets or 800-494-8497. For more information call 202-777-3248.
An Interview With Gregory King
By James McCaskill
EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND. By all rights this should carry a Toronto, Ontario, dateline as the interview took place during the Toronto International Film Festival. The interview was arranged by the Edinburgh IFF Press office as Greg could not come to the United Kingdom. Why couldn't he enter the UK? We'll see in a moment.
"The only escape from the nightmare of Christmas in Gregory King's toxic assault on family togetherness," says Bill Gosden, Director, New Zealand international Film Festival 2003, "is the bathroom. It is where the real stuff happens, and the real stuff in Christmas is not something you share with the family. . .this singular, bleakly funny, R-rated version of Kiwi life clinches his position as the most distinctive new voice in New Zealand film."
When I asked Greg to describe his film [Christmas, NZ, 2003], he said, "It is quite a full on experience. In New Zealand and Australia, they laughed. The Swiss were shocked by it. After the first screening [at the TIFF] the was laughter which was great. There was a heated discussion afterwards." Different audiences having different takes was not the only difference. The critics seemed to have seen different films. In Scotland they appreciated it and gave the film high marks. Christmas did not click with the Toronto press as most tended to under value it.
When asked what he would focus on if he were writing a review the director said, "Well, I could talk about what was going on in the film. It is a reactionary film. That could be a weakness and a strength. It is a reactionary film as it reacts against the type of films that come out of New Zealand. Recently a high proportion value beautiful landscapes and romanticize the Maori people and their experience. That's why I situated it in and around the house. No beautiful landscapes. The pitch of the drama is very much influenced by documentary films. It is observational. It is about small gestures. Hearing what people talk about is not so important. It is about their relationships. The film has an enigmatic quality. I created a space within the film that allows the audience to complete the equation by involving their imaginations. That is why there is an absence of soundtrack because I don't want to tell the audience how to react or respond to a situation."
"That is why," he continued, "people leave the house and come back and something has happened but we don't know what. Things are not explained. Some people have real problems with that and I feel a bit sad at that actually. People are so use to having everything spoon fed in terms of cinematic experience. I just said, 'Look at that. That was it. Go away. I am not going to answer it.' What you see and what you what you listen to is what was going on. That's it."
While Christmas does not depend on plot but shows what the director calls "moments of life." This is a film that observes a family as it copes with pressures, some know and some unknown, in the days leading up to Christmas. The characters simply respond or fail to respond to other members of the family. In this film we are asked to experience the events in this family's life without the director judging them or, as he says, "assuming the arrogant stance of attempting to fully understand their behavior."
The Cooks, the family in the film, are a mixed race family; patriarch Brian is Maori. The Maori people descended from the Polynesians who settled in New Zealand before the Europeans came. The matriarch, Loma, is a Pakeha--a name given to someone of European ancestry. The director comes from a mixed ethnic background of Maori and Pakeha. He made the decision to cast this 'mixed' marriage because as he says, "I wanted to look at the duality that sits in our culture, often with some tension and illness. Yet I didn't want to make a definitive and limited statement about race and colonization." It is this situation that the audience has to come to its own conclusions. Greg sees this family as "a particular metaphorical microcosm of New Zealand life."
The film begins with Keri, the eldest son, returning home four days before Christmas after being away for several years. We follow his journey from that of someone who is somewhat of an outsider at the start of the film through his gradual disintegration into the family fold and back into an old and familiar dysfunctional pattern. We can clearly see just how much power the bonds of family can have over us especially in the sense of trying to forge and live a separate and independent life.
Brian and Loma have long given up on a dream retirement as they savings have been whittled away by financially supporting their family. Loma is close to a breakdown with the stress and her relationship with Brian has been reduced to a series of well worn rituals.
Their eldest daughter, Megan, is living in their basement with her two children, Faith and Moses, and her boyfriend Brett, the father of Faith. Moses is from an earlier failed relationship and is only tolerated by Brett. Megan is an obsessive character who believes that she is the only one who does anything about the house and is jealous of the attention that the others seem to get. The other daughter, Donna, is an enigmatic character through the early parts of the film. She is isolated, silently smoking outside or picking at her food in the kitchen as the rest of the family are chatting and eating in front of the television.
As Keri navigates his way through the relationships his own pain and demons come closer to home. He has been through a lot while away, physically and mentally and needs to find meaning in family relationships. Things start to unravel as Keri's dissatisfaction with the family situation grows.
Greg King continued explaining his reactionary film. "It is a reaction against that sort of film [a film that explains everything]; the Once We Were Warriors, Whale Rider exoticism of Maori. Eroticizing that experience. Christmas shows another side of New Zealand."
"We decided ," he said about funding this film, "to go and get funding from an arts organization and went with a low budget, the film was made for $39,000, in order to have complete freedom. We shot the film for 12,000 euros and then got 20,000 after the fact to do a bit of grading on it and sound work. So it was pretty low budget. The film was written in 2-1/2 weeks. No rehearsal period. The cast and crew was a mix of non-actors and professionals. And especially the crew was very inexperienced. We shot for 2-1/2 weeks. It was edited on my friend's computer in his bedroom. Very, very low budget. We were actually incredibly toked to get into Melbourne [Film Festival]. And then we got invitations from Montréal, which we did not go to because we choose Toronto instead. Venice, Edinburgh Lugarno, Melbourne--could not go to Venice because we had already said yes to Melbourne and Lugarno. Venice had to be a World Premiere. So missed out on that. It would have been very stressful because we had no money or resources for press kits and that sort of stuff. It has been quite amazing. It was an experience that I learned a lot through. Now I have to sit there and watch it and go, 'Well, OK, here it is.' but I think there is weakness about it but it does have a unique kind of effect to it and something about it."
"It had such a low budget that I filmed in my parents house. The house you see in the film is the one I grew up in so it was pretty weird. One of the reasons we were able to make it."
"I grew up reading comics," he said answering my question about his going into film making, "and watching TV. I always had a passion for film as an experience. I was captivated by film, by cinema. I started making performance work, devising scripts, in theatre companies. Doing my own stuff and being an actor in other people's stuff. Then I got disillusioned with that and traveled. Came back to NZ and decided to make film. I did not want to wait around for funding. I had an idea, a friend had a one chip video camera. Said, 'Right. Going to write a scenario that exploits the media.' In Pop [his first, a short film] the characters are actually shooting the film. Three intimate portraits as the camera travels through these three human worlds. The characters are shooting the footage of their situation: walking with it, putting it down, shooting intimate scenes of each other. That went on to win a major award at Melbourne which is one of the biggest short film festivals in the world. It had an interesting history. Showed it to the Commission in my naiveté and they said, 'Oh, no, no. It is experimental. You have all the jiggily camera shots maybe but it is not...' They just did not get it because every shot is jiggily as it is about an experience, intimacy, spontaneity. I was going to send it off anyway. The Commission had a list of 10-12 festivals. If you get into one of these festivals they will blow it up to 35mm. They did not think I had a shot at it. Sent it to Melbourne and it won an award for feature documentary. They blew it up but would not put their logo on it."
"I reapplied for funding for Christmas through the arts organization. The most they give out is about $13,000 US. We got funded. Obviously no one was going to get paid. That is why a lot of the actors were not professionals. They were prepared to do it. Then some professions who wanted to work because they liked the script. That is how it evolved really."
Was the film totally scripted? "It was all scripted. With an emphasis that words might not be necessary. Some of the words are important. Then, like any other process, I work quite organically when it comes to shooting or read through. When we shot it we blocked it through and said 'That does not work. Cut the dialogue. Just do this.' In the end there is stuff that was not in the original script."
"I have been to eight institutions in my life and left everyone. I have not been able to cope with them. Been pretty much the level of teaching. The quality of the teaching. Been disappointed by every one. Traveled to London then Amsterdam then back to New Zealand."
Projects in the works? "Living in Amsterdam now at an institute called Mauritis Binger Film Institute. Will be there for five months and they work in a laboratory situation. They have a writing program; two seminars a year. Seven to ten project scripts to work on. They bring in top quality people to workshop the scripts and develop them. You work in teams. Very, very intense. I am in the Director's Program which happens once a year. Top level of tutorship. It has an international make up. For older people who have made some films. People in their 30s and 40s. Then I am going back to NZ and develop a script. I'll cast it and workshop extensively with actors to have an authentic characterization. It will then be shot with a low budget."
What part of making Christmas gave the most trouble? "We cast quite extensively and I ended up choosing non-actors who were interesting in themselves--with interesting faces--in prisons. A problem in NZ is that there are not a lot of good cinematic actors because there is not a lot of films made. Actors are interested in TV. The short shooting schedule made it difficult. People had to be coached through the process of acting. Understanding acting was the most difficult. Later going through the material there was stuff we did not pull off. OK. Didn't pull that off. That's not in the script. We start again and cut that material out. Reshoot? No budget for that. Twenty people in a place two hours from where they were living in a motor camp. Had to feed people three meals a day. Coffee. Puddings. We went to the Arts Commission rather than the Film Commission. They are interested in more commercial projects and have more interference. When you get money from Creative NZ you can pretty much do what you want. Because Christmas has been so successful we can go to the Film Commission and probably have more chance and greater freedom."
Does it help having a showing at Toronto? "Gateway to the American market. After Cannes it is the most important in the world now. So getting in here is pretty big. Edinburgh has a good reputation. Just to go to these festivals and get a sense of the international community and what goes on is important because I did not have any contact with that until about a year ago."
Distribution plans? "Nothing. The market for art house cinema, independent cinema is shrinking. It is really, really difficult. A film like Christmas is going to ride the festival circuit. It is going to be like a calling card. It will help with the next project." I checked with his New Zealand distributors about showings in North America and found that nothing was scheduled."
Why could you not get to Edinburgh? "I lived in London in 1996 and I did a little bit of part time work on a tourist visa. Massaging people in a very expensive health club in High Street, Kensington. I got busted. I got found out and was kicked out of the country. I went to reapply and they treated me as if I had murdered somebody or dealt heroin. They were really rude to me. The post-September 11 political environment means there is no room for appeal. 'This is out policy.' Nothing. I am locked out."
European Film Academy Nominations Announced
By James McCaskill
EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND. The European Film Academy has announced its nominations for their 2003 film awards. The winners will be announced during the Awards Ceremony at the Arena in Berlin on Saturday, December 6, 2003.
Nominated for European film of the year are: Dirty Pretty Things (UK), directed by Stephen Frears, produced by Celador Films; Dogville (Denmark/Netherlands/Sweden/France/UK/Germany), directed by Lars von Trier, produced by Zentropa Entertainments8 ApS/Isabella Films IntMemfis Film Int/Pain Unlimited/Sigma Films/Slot Machine); Good Bye, Lenin! (Germany), directed by Wolfgang Becker, produced by X Filme Creative Pool GmbH; In This World (UK), directed by Michael Winterbottom, produced by Revolution Films; Mi Vida Sin Mi (My Life Without Me) (Spain/Canada), directed by Isabel Coixet, produced by El Deseo D.A. S.L.D./Milestone Productions Inc; Swimming Pool (France/UK), directed by François Ozon, produced by Fidélité Production/Headforce Ltd/France 2 Cinéma/Gimages Films.
Nuri Bilge Ceylan for Uzak and Marco Tullio Giordana for La Meglio Gioventu (The Best of Youth) along with Becker, Coixet, von Trier, Winterbottom are nominated for European Director of the Year.
European Actor nominations are Daniel Bruhl in Good Bye, Lenin!, Luigi Lo Cascio in La Meglio Gioventù, Chiwentel Ejiofor in Dirty Pretty Things, Tomas Lemarquis in Nói Albinói (Noi the Albino), Jean Rochefort in L'Homme du Train (Man on the Train), and Bruno Todeschini in Son Frère (His Brother).
Nominations for European Actress go to Diana Dumbrava in Maria, Helen Mirren in Calendar Girls, Charlotte Rampling in Swimming Pool, Anne Reid in The Mother, Katja Riemann in Rosenstrasse, Katrin Sass in Good Bye, Lenin!.
Five American films are among the eight films nominated in the Non-European International category. Nominations are 21 Grams by Alejandro González Iñárritu (US), Finding Nemo by Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich (US), Kill Bill: Volume 1 by Quentin Tarantino (US), Lost in Translation by Sofia Coppola (US), Mystic River by Clint Eastwood (US) Others nominated are Bom, Yeoreum, Gaeul, Gyeowool, Geurigo Bom (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter. . .and Spring) by Kim Ki-Duk/Korea/Germany, Les Invasions Barbares (The Barbarian Invasions) by Denys Arcand (Canada) and Zatoichi by Takeshi Kitano (Japan).
Marco Bellocchio, the Italian filmmaker, has been named as recipient of the European Film Citics Award, the Prix FIPRESCI, for his film Buongiorno notte (Good Morning, Night). The was a film that Ron and I gave rave review to at Toronto. Last year the Prix FIPRESCI was given to Ken Loach for Sweet Sixteen. FIPRESCI wanted to single out not only a masterwork, one of the best of its author, but also his the more than twenty films in his outstanding filmography which goes back to 1965.
Tapped for the Best Screenwriter award are Steve Knight for Dirty Pretty Things, Dussan Kovacevic for The Profesionalat (The Professional), Hanif Kureishi for The Mother, Bernd Lichtenberg for Good Bye, Lenin!, Sandro Petraglia and Stefano Rulli for La Meglio Gioventù and Lars von Trier for Dogville.
Those up for European Cinematographer 2003 are Anthony Dod Mantle for Dogville and 28 Days Later, Tom Fohrmann form Das Wunder von Bern, Bogumil Godfrejow for Lichter (Distant Lights), Chris Menges for Dirty Pretty Things, Italo Petriccione for Io non ho paura (I’m Not Scared), and Marcel Zyskind for In This World.
The Prix Fassbinder Award will be given to the European Film Academy Discovery for 2003. The Prix UIP Award will go to Academy Short Film and the Prix Arte is awarded to the best documentary.
In addition to the awards listed above, the following will be announced and presented during the Awards Ceremony: European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award 2003, European Achievement in World Cinema 2003, and The Jameson People's Choice Awards 2003 for Best European Actor, Best European Actress and Best European Director.
Zatoichi to Open Rotterdam Film Festival
By James McCaskill
ROTTERDAM, the Netherlands. Takeshi Kitano's highly acclaimed film, Zatoichi, will open the 33d International Film Festival Rotterdam. This film has one of the most marvelous finales of any film I've seen in years. The major director, star and entertainer will attend the opening of the 2004 IFFR. Kitano himself plays the title role as the legendary, blind swordsman with the young star of Japanese cinema Asano Tadanobu as his opponent. "Full of vitality, wit and marvelously choreographed sword-play Zatoichi will start the festival in a wonderful mood," says IFFR director Simon Field. "We have chosen this film not only to represent the festival's long-standing enthusiasm for Japanese cinema but also our admiration for the work of Kitano in particular. It's a great honor for me personally in my last year as a director of the festival and the festival itself that Mr. Kitano has broken into a very hectic schedule to be present in Rotterdam." The 2004 festival runs from 21 January to 1 February.
The festival also announced that the second Artist in Focus (last year the French artist Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster was the first honored) will be British artist and filmmaker Isaac Julien. It is a choice that marks the festival's commitment to exploring and highlighting the growing cross-over between cinema and the visual arts and the strength of its partnership with the other art institutions in Rotterdam. Julien began his career as a filmmaker but for several years has devoted himself largely to installation work and is now recognized as a major artist on the international scene particularly with his recent pieces "Paradise Omeros" and "Baltimore", which skillfully combine elements of cinema and the visual arts, the contrasts of popular and high art and aspects of black culture. Both these pieces and others will be presented in Rotterdam where the Focus will consist of installation in both the Rotterdam Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen and at the Rotterdam art centre Tent. Julien is Britain's renown black filmmaker with an international reputation as artist, writer, teacher and scholar. His films include Frantz Fanon: Black Skin, White Mask (1995), the Cannes Film Festival prize winner, Young Soul Rebels (1991), and the Langston Hughes documentary, Looking for Langston (1989). Badasssss Cinema, a look at black action films of the 1970s, continues his fascination with race and masculinity in films. His film work is known for dream like images.
Three other thematic sidebar events have been announced. Homefront USA, Power : Play and Once We Were Birds: Romani Cinema.
Homefront USA is programmer Gertjan Zuilhof's reflections of American film-, vido- and digital media makers on the current cultural and political climate in the sole remaining super power. Zuilhof says of one that got away, "The most intriguing films are the ones you haven't seen. For instance, I would love to see DC 9/11: Time of Crisis (directed by a certain Brian Trenchard-Smith). Jim Hoberman wrote a stimulating piece about it in the Village Voice. It is a docudrama with the present American President playing a leading role and turns out to be unashamedly pro-Bush. After all critical, satirical, militant activist and portraits of the present American cultural and political climate that I have seen for the Homefront program, such an example of hero worship struck me as being a relief. The film was commissioned by Showtime Networks and has been broadcast in America (around the time of the most recent anniversary of 9/11). Showtime was not willing to release the film for a festival. They wouldn't even give me a viewing copy. The festival season of the film is supposedly past (even though the film has never been shown at any festival) and so not a dime of marketing time could be spent on it."
This sidebar will not only explore the diverse ways in which film-makers and artists are reflecting on the current political climate in the US. It will include films that explore the place of violence in today's American society (Golden Palm winner Elephant by Gus Van Sant), the tobacco industry (Bright Leaves by Ross McElwee) or speak out directly about the consequences of ‘September 11’ for the average American, as in the documentary Parallel Lines by Nina Davenport. It will also feature web sites and short films--in all shapes and sizes, from burlesque satire to outspokenly militant and activist work.
The sidebar on Romani Cinema will be devoted to films by and about the Roma and thus continues a tradition in the festival of celebrating the voices and the riches of unsung cultures. Festival organizers say, "A large selection of features, shorts and documentaries will include films by Romani directors featuring Romani actors and the majority of them in the Romani language. Very rarely seen classics from a variety of European countries, and rare U.S. features about the Roma will play alongside premiering documentaries like Aleksander Manic's Shutka (Yugoslavia/Czech Republic) and Zelimir Zilnik's Kenedi Comes Back Home (Yugoslavia) to present a diverse celebration of Romani culture and an exploration of how it has been represented by the Roma themselves and by others."
With the program Power : Play curated by IFFR programmer Edwin Carels, Exploding Cinema this year is focusing on the phenomenon of the growing overlap of work and play, politics and fun. Inspired by computer games, an increasing number of artists are exploiting this relatively young audiovisual medium technique to voice their criticism. Visual artists and film makers explicitly borrow their rhetoric from game culture. With the programm Power : Play, Exploding Cinema is presenting hacked games, presentations by the makers, installations, films and events. For Power : Play, IFFR 2004 creates both an Activist Arcade (the ‘Fight Club’), and an Artistic Arena (the exhibition ‘Friendly Fire’). From Counterstrike to Velvet Strike--are there any innocent games?
In a compilation titled Just a Minute, ten one-minute films will see their world premiere during IFFR 2004. In a project designed to celebrate and promote adventurous short film-making, the Rotterdam film festival has invited ten talented directors, masters of the short film form (most of them regularly presenting work in Rotterdam this and past years) to make a special one-minute film as part of a project collaboration between IFFR and the Dutch Province of Zuid-Holland. The film-makers participating in the ‘Just a Minute’-program are Yael Bartana (The Netherlands), Anouk de Clercq (Belgium), Tony Cokes (USA), Werther Germondari (Italy), Christoph Girardet (Germany), Lewis Klahr (USA), Miguel Gomes (Portugal), Nicolas Provost (Belgium), Brothers Quay (UK) and Bea de Visser (The Netherlands). The collaboration between IFFR and the Province of Zuid-Holland will continue after the festival and will involve short film-making by professionals and high school stu dents, regional tours of selected festival films and film education. In a similar way, the IFFR was also involved in film production by commissioning ten video-diaries for its 2001-edition sidebar ’On the Waterfront’.
Calendar of Events
FILMS
American Film Institute Silver Theater
In December, the AFI starts a series of 17 films starring Bill Murray, a series of Iranian films (see above), and has week-long shows of Hukkle (Gyorgy Palft, 2002) from Hungary, and Better Housekeeping (Frank Novak, 2000). Check the website for others.
Freer Gallery of Art
Continuing its series "Discoveries", the Freer presents a program of avant-garde films on December 5 at 7:00pm, including Kusama's Self-Obliteration (Jud Yalkut, 1967), Love (Takahiko Iimura, 1962), In the River (Takahiko Iimura, 1969), and Fly (Yoko Ono, 1970). On December 7 at 2:00pm is Mekhong Full Moon Party (Jira Maligool, 2002) from Thailand, No One's Ark (Nobuhiro Yamashita, 2002) from Japan on December 12 at 7:00pm, and on December 14 at 2:00pm is a program of nine animated films inspired by The Matrix, directed by some of the biggest names in animation and each exploring a different aspect of The Matrix phenomenon.
National Gallery of Art
A series of films by Finnish director Aki Kaurismaki include Crime and Punishment (1983) shown with Calamari Union (1984) on December 6 at 2:00pm; Hamlet Goes Business (1987) shown with Shadows in Paradise (1986) on December 7 at 3:30pm; Total Balalaika Show (1994) shown with La Vie de Boheme (1992) on December 21 at 4:00pm; Match Factory Girl (1992) preceded by two shorts on December 26 at 2:30pm; I Hired a Contract Killer (1990) on December 27 at 12:30pm; Ariel (1989) shown with Leningrad Cowboys Go America (1989) on December 27 at 2:00pm; and Drifting Clouds (1989) shown with Juha (1999) on December 28 at 2:00pm. A lecture about Kaurismaki by Peter von Bagh is on December 7 at 2:00pm.
On December 14 at 2:00pm is My Architect: A Son's Journey (Nathaniel Kahn, 2003) and a double feature of Alfred Hitchcock's The Lodger (1926) is shown with Blackmail (1929) on December 20 at 2:30pm with organ accompaniment by Dennis James.
National Museum of African Art
On December 11 at 7:00pm is Identity Card (1998), an award-winning film about Africans living abroad. On December 27 at 2:00pm is Seven Candles of Swanzaa (1993) a short (12 min.) film about celebrating the African-American holiday, followed by a demonstration.
National Museum of Women in the Arts
On December 3 at 7:00pm is Radiance (Rachael Perkins, 1997) an Australian film about three aboriginal sisters. On December 7 at 7:00pm is a program of three short films based on writings of Eudora Welty to accompany the exhibition of photogaphs by Eudora Welty. The short films include: A Worn Path (Bruce Schwartz, 1994), The Key (Francis James, 1996), and Why I Live at the P.O. (Jodie Markell, 1998), with Jodie Markell in person.
Films on the Hill
To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers First Flight on December 17, 1903, Films on the Hill presents films with an aviation theme. John Ford's Airmail (1932) stars Pat O'Brien and Gloria Stuart on December 3 at 7:00pm; World War I ace Ernst Udet demonstrates his amazing flying skills in Storms Over Mont Blanc (Arnold Fanck, 1930) with Leni Riefenstahl in her first talkie on December 10 at 7:00pm; Clark Gable portrayed a pilot for the first time in Hell Divers (1931) on December 12 at 7:00pm; and for the anniversary day, December 17 is a Program of Aviation Short Films including documentaries, newsreel footage, comedies including the first known movie with an airplane as part of the plot, and cartoons. All are at 7:00pm.
DC Jewish Community Center
See the story above.
Pickford Theater
On December 2 at 7:00pm is a double feature of The Bad One (1930) shown with Daughter of Shanghai (1937); on December 4 at 6:30pm is a double feature of The Fair Co-ed (1927) shown with The Duchess of Buffalo (1926); and on December 10 at 7:00pm is Once Upon a Time in America (Sergio Leone, 1971). See the website for others.
Goethe Institute
The three-part series The Manns--Novel of a Century (Heinrich Breloer, 2001) is shown on December 1, 8, and 15 at 6:30pm; a mixture of dramatization with newsreels and interviews, archival and recent with the principals.
Smithsonian Associates
The Girl with a Pearl Earring (Peter Webber, 2003) is showing on December 2 at 7:00pm. National Gallery of Art curator and Vermeer expert Arthur Wheelock introduces the audience to Vermeer, his work, and the time period of the film.
FILM LECTURES
